What must be done with temporary ballast when weighing an aircraft?

• A. It must be removed from the aircraft.
• B. It should remain in place.
• C. It should be relocated to adjust CG.
• D. It should be weighed separately.

Answer: (A)

Temporary ballast is used only to facilitate the weighing process. It provides the needed load to bring the aircraft onto the scales so you can measure the true weight and balance, but it isn’t part of the aircraft in service. Once the measurement is complete, you remove the ballast so the recorded weight and center of gravity reflect the aircraft as it will operate with its actual equipment, payload, and fuel. Leaving ballast in place would distort the true weight and CG data. So the ballast must be removed after weighing.